Senior Oregon Open/2022
Malby Wins Senior Oregon Open
By Cameron McCauley, PNW PGA Tournament Intern
This year marked the 20th anniversary of the Senior Oregon Open Invitational hosted at Wildhorse Resort and Casino. 74 PNW PGA Professionals and 222 amateurs, for a total of 296 players, competed at Wildhorse Resort GC and The GC at Birch Creek in Pendleton, OR on July 26 and 27, with a playoff held the following morning. PGA Professional Ryan Malby of Kalispel, MT won the title in a three-hole playoff against PGA Professional Jeff Gove of The Idaho Club.
Heading into the final day of the tournament, Ryan Malby and amateur Ron Hop of Chehalem Glenn were leading the tournament with a 65, 7-under. Trailing them by one shot were PGA Professional Scott Kreiger of Emerald Valley GC and amateur Jay Poletiek of Columbia Edgewater CC with a 66, 6-under. At the end of the final round, Ryan Malby and Jeff Gove finished at 12-under, 122 to force a playoff.
After both scoring birdies on the first hole and par on the second, Malby birdied the third hole to win the Senior Oregon Open Invitational.
“It truly feels amazing to finally win another PNW Section event,” said Malby of winning his first Section senior title. “I still struggle with the fact that I am actually 50. But I am truly thrilled and blessed to still be able to play golf at a high level!”
"As I age it is incredibly important to stay fluid, flexible and strong. Jeff Coston is an absolute testament to that!" Malby elaborated, citing the importance of working with a chiropractor and masseuse weekly and staying fit.
Malby spoke upon Wild Horse Resort Golf Club and The Golf Club at Birch Creek, stating, “First and foremost, I absolutely love both courses. I feel like both courses brought out my strengths because there are a lot of short irons and wedges, and the greens are very receptive. I loved the soft lush fairways, and the greens were in incredibly great shape. So fun to putt on! There were only a couple (stressful) tee shots, so I was certainly able to freely swing the driver on most holes.”
During the championship, a pro-am competition was held concurrently. Teams consisted of one PGA Professional and three amateurs. The team led by PGA Professional Scott Krieger of Emerald Valley GC, Kevin Burnett of Wine Valley GC, Billy Anderson of Emerald Valley GC and Ron Hop of Chehalem Glenn won the two-day team competition after firing 36-under par 118-134-252 in the one gross, one net competition.
Malby commented, “It was an absolute blast to take three of my dear friends, Jon Lowry, Chuck Eble, and Jose Chirino to their first PNW PGA Section Event. We have played in so many events like this together for decades and know each other's games so well. It was just an extremely fun four days competing and playing together!”
The section would like to thank Wild Horse Resort and Casino for their 20 years of continued support in hosting this event. Special thanks go to PGA Director of Golf Professional Mike Hegarty and his golf operations staff, along with Superintendent Sean Hoolehan and his grounds crew as well as head PGA Professional Ryan Dahl of The GC at Birch Creek and his staff. We look forward to celebrating our 21st Senior Oregon Open at Wildhorse Resort and Casino next August!
Final results: https://2022secsroregonopen.golfgenius.com